Big-Dave

Thanks, eBay here I come

Hi all I had a lot of problems a while ago getting discs to write using my SONY DRU-190a. It transpired that I was using discs that it didn't like!! I was quite surprised that a new supposedly all-singing all-dancing drive would struggle with what were pretty good discs but there we have it. Following some top advice from this forum, I invested in some Verbatim DVD-R (Taiyo Yuden) and haven't had a problem since. Until now. I've run out. And I can't find any more!! But I can fine Verbatim DVD+R (Taiyo Yuden). So, my question is, will these work just as well? I don't wanna invest in a pack of these to find out they don't work! Thanks in advance

Thanks for the reply Cynthia. I had actually come to the same conclusion today. I know that when I switch on my G: drive I receive a message saying that it isn't connected to the fastest USB port. Yet when I connect to the faster port it doesn't work LOL I'm just glad the writer is working again If it continues to let me write with the problem I have with G: then excellent, and if not I can just copy what I want over to C: before I start. Thanks again Dave

My new discs arrived today, excellent service indeed. I tried to burn one, tbh not expecting it to make a difference, but it worked!!! Looks like I am sticking to these discs now forevermore I noticed on the log some parts were highlighted in yellow (not highlighted in this post but it's the parts beginning with 'W'), I guess some kind of problem. Need I worry about it? Here is the log: I 11:04:32 ImgBurn Version 2.4.2.0 started! I 11:04:32 Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition (5.1, Build 2600 : Service Pack 3) I 11:04:32 Total Physical Memory: 523,760 KB - Available: 180,288 KB I 11:04:32 Initialising SPTI... I 11:04:32 Searching for SCSI / ATAPI devices... I 11:04:33 Found 1 DVD

I have just ordered some of these big boys from eBay : 50 Verbatim DVD-R 16x/4.7gb (Taiyo Yuden) Hopefully that will do the trick, I'll let you know. And if it doesn't at least it rules out the media as likely cause. Thanks

Hi, and thanks again for your help. There is no brand name (or anything else) on the disc. They are plain white (for printing on I assume). They are all from the same spindle and the only reference to what discs they are was on an insert which I got rid of when I opened the pack GRRRR. For all I know they are proper Verbatims!! I tried to delete and reinstall my IDE controllers but same result. I am gonna have to go get some new discs aren't I? LOL Thanks for your help and fingers crossed the new discs will work when I get them. Dave

No joy. Problem seems the same to my untrained eye, although I didn't have to wait as long for it to fail!! I 11:21:30 ImgBurn Version 2.4.2.0 started! I 11:21:30 Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition (5.1, Build 2600 : Service Pack 3) I 11:21:30 Total Physical Memory: 523,760 KB - Available: 115,344 KB I 11:21:30 Initialising SPTI... I 11:21:30 Searching for SCSI / ATAPI devices... I 11:21:31 Found 1 DVD

Hi, Thanks for the reply I am desperate to get this sorted!! I am surprised that slower doesn't mean a better burn, I will try again using a faster speed of x8. However, it doesn't look to me like it burned anything so I am not hopeful that a faster speed will make a difference. Hopefully I will be just as wrong about this as I was about assuming that slower was better Dave

Hi all, I am unable to write anything to DVD, and have no idea what the problem is. Here is the log: I 01:59:18 ImgBurn Version 2.4.2.0 started! I 01:59:18 Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition (5.1, Build 2600 : Service Pack 3) I 01:59:18 Total Physical Memory: 523,760 KB - Available: 302,584 KB I 01:59:18 Initialising SPTI... I 01:59:18 Searching for SCSI / ATAPI devices... I 01:59:19 Found 1 DVD

Oh ok, have never heard of that before! Thanks for the tip. Mind you, then where would I get all these lovely coasters from?

Cynthia, Thanks again for the reply. Your help is much appreciated. It may seem strange that I am burning a few tracks to DVD, but that is only to see if I can write ANYTHING to DVD successfully. It just happened to be the first type of file I found. To try and fail over and over with a larger type of file would take longer each time. I figured that when I sorted the problem and the disc wrote ok, it stood to reason I could then write anything I liked. I thought back to when I last had a problem like this, and it was after a reformat of my hard drive. It literally took me months last time to work out what was wrong, before I found an IDE chipset update on the PC manufacturers website which I duly installed and it fixed the problem. So I thought (despite there not being a reformat/reinstall this time) I would try it again. So i did. And it worked Problem solved, thanks for your ideas. I have posted back this result as maybe it could help you assist someone else in the future. Thanks again, this site and it's members are fab Dave p.s. here is the log from the successful write in case it helps somehow: I 15:46:16 ImgBurn Version 2.4.2.0 started! I 15:46:16 Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition (5.1, Build 2600 : Service Pack 3) I 15:46:16 Total Physical Memory: 523,760 KB - Available: 179,380 KB I 15:46:16 Initialising SPTI... I 15:46:16 Searching for SCSI / ATAPI devices... I 15:46:16 Found 1 DVD

I have tried again at x2.4, seems the same result to me. Coaster anyone? Here is the log: I 15:05:36 ImgBurn Version 2.4.2.0 started! I 15:05:36 Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition (5.1, Build 2600 : Service Pack 3) I 15:05:36 Total Physical Memory: 523,760 KB - Available: 141,864 KB I 15:05:37 Initialising SPTI... I 15:05:37 Searching for SCSI / ATAPI devices... I 15:05:47 Found 1 DVD

Thanks for the reply Cynthia. Previously I was using the yellow datawrite discs and wrote many discs without any problem whatsoever. They ran out, and I now have a spindle of discs which I actually I don't know what they are as I removed the label LOL. To look at they are just white (printable) no writing at all nor labelling. They were the ones the local shop recommended. I have also got a spindle of 50 Tesco own DVD-Rs which my wife kindly picked up for me. Same result exactly. I wasn't having any problems with the previous disc, but to my knowledge these discs should work ok and it is very frustrating that they don't! I am about to try a lower speed write, but tbh I don't hold out much hope I will post the new log. Dave

Hi all For some reason I am no longer able to burn onto DVD! I ran out of the discs I was using and have different ones now but I don't know why that would make a difference. As far as I remember, no settings have changed with my PC that could have made a difference, though I am always fiddling with something so it is a possibility!! I have no idea what is wrong, my writer is quite new and hasn't been used much so I find it hard to believe I need a new one already. I have teh write speed down to only x6 and don't think that has anything to do with it. I am using MCC tpye discs which I understand are good quality. I am flummoxed! I would really appreciate any assistance, here is the log: ; //****************************************\\ ; ImgBurn Version 2.4.2.0 - Log ; Saturday, 08 November 2008, 14:07:43 ; \\****************************************// ; ; I 14:02:17 ImgBurn Version 2.4.2.0 started! I 14:02:17 Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition (5.1, Build 2600 : Service Pack 3) I 14:02:17 Total Physical Memory: 523,760 KB - Available: 91,692 KB I 14:02:17 Initialising SPTI... I 14:02:17 Searching for SCSI / ATAPI devices... I 14:02:17 Found 1 DVD

I am very pleased to report that this evening I have written both a data DVD and also a movie DVD! I visited the Packard Bell website to find information on how to find any suitable BIOS/Chipset upgrades for my PC. The PB site was excellent, and invited me to enter my PC's serial number (thank you Belarc Advisor for telling me what it was) then presented me with all the upgrades / drivers / etc that my PC needed. This included a more recent BIOS update, and also a more recent Chipset upgrade. It also included an IDE patch!! The file was called col2idepatch in case anyone looks here in the future with a similar problem. I installed the Chipset upgrade and the IDE patch (not the BIOS update yet as I need a floppy and for some reason my floppies aren't formatting - a job for another day!) I believe one of those two updates solved my problem. The discs wrote at x8, very quiet and I have watched the film on my own DVD player and it was perfect throughout. Just wanna thanks everyone for all your help and ideas, nice one

=============================================== Filter Driver Load Order - ImgBurn v2.4.2.0 =============================================== Upper Device Filter: redbook Upper Class Filter: [None Found] Device: CD/DVD-ROM Device Lower Class Filter: [None Found] Lower Device Filter: [None Found] Filter Name: redbook File Name: C:\WINDOWS\system32\DRIVERS\redbook.sys File Version: 5.1.2600.5512 (xpsp.080413-2108) File Description: Redbook Audio Filter Driver Product Name: Microsoft

Thanks very much for the links. I hadn't tried googling the fault which is just so stupid of me after everything I have done! I have read those threads, and they have some good info in them. I will look into updating the bios of my mainboard and also the chipset of my mainboard too. No idea where to start lol, hope google is in fine spirits this evening My startup is quite clean, only a few items, I like my PC to whizz round lol. I have a couple of items in Task Manager I can look into though. Thanks again for the advice and please keep the ideas coming

Since making these changes, I have had two more attempts at writing to DVD - each time just a small file using ImgBurn - both of these attempts have failed exactly the same way as previously. Any more ideas? I am starting to think I may have a registry issue, and am getting to the point where I am ready to reformat my HD and do a clean XP install. Think it could be a registry problem? Thanks again

Thanks very much for your reply Was this intentional? I mean, you're only burning 5 small files to a DVD disc. If this wasn't intentional, go to the Options tab of ImgBurn's Build mode and click Reset Settings, then confirm. I intentionally chose a few small files just to see if they would write. If they did, I would then have tried a serious burn. If it can't burn something so small, then no way would it work on a normal size file. Also, I figured, it was something which I would get results from quite quickly. It was a waste of a disk I know, but these past few days have seen me build up quite a collection of coasters anyway! Please put the Write Type back to DAO/SAO (it's in Tools -> Settings -> Write tab). You can change the write speed in the Device tab of ImgBurn's Build mode. I would recommend trying 8x or 12x and it should work. Are those blanks made by Verbatim or other brand? Have you tried with DVD+R blanks? I have changed the write type back to DAO/SAO as you suggested. I dropped the write speed down to x4 (same logic as above - if it successfully writes at x4 I can bring the speed up for the next one). I'm now using Datawrite Yellow DVD-R discs, and have not yet tried DVD+R; In fact all the discs I have tried have been DVD-R. I tried a burn with the changed settings, it failed in the same way as usual, here is the log: I 11:08:07 ImgBurn Version 2.4.2.0 started! I 11:08:07 Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition (5.1, Build 2600 : Service Pack 3) I 11:08:07 Total Physical Memory: 523,760 KB - Available: 192,864 KB I 11:08:07 Initialising SPTI... I 11:08:07 Searching for SCSI / ATAPI devices... I 11:08:07 Found 1 DVD-ROM, 1 DVD

Hi all, and thanks in advance for trying to help. I have looked through all the existing threads in search of a solution to my woes, and despite thinking I have managed to solve it on a few occassions, I am exactly where I was when I started. I really hope someone can help. I will give you as much information as I can, and nowhere better to start than by saying I do not believe the fault is with ImgBurn at all! I have come here for your help as I have been unable to sort things out elsewhere, and I figured that someone among you may have the answer I need. I have a Packard Bell PC, which is all OEM except for the DVD-writer. I originally bought a DVD writer from a computer fair many years ago, and it worked perfectly, though was rarely used. I ran out of discs (I was using Datawrite yellow DVD-R and not once did I have a problem with writing to them). I wasn't aware at the time that there was a noticeable difference in reliability in discs, and just picked up some more DVD-Rs from Tesco - their own discs. Since this moment I have been unable to write to DVD Obvious cause of the problem was the new type of disc, so I went this time to my local computer shop. They agreed the Tesco ones were liable to be of poor quality, and gave me some others - not sure what they were but they are totally white (printable), and they said these were excellent. I took them home, and I had the same problem. I took the discs back, they tested one from the pack and said it was fine. Then we got talking about my DVD-writer, and the fact it was a few years old. They said it could well be that it's had enough and needs replacing. I bought myself a new Sony DVD RW DRU-190a all-singing all-dancing writer. I fitted it, and I had EXACTLY the same problem. This to me suggests it is neither the writer nor the discs at fault. But I decided to source some of the original Datawrite yellows that I had previously, got them from eBay, and they don't work either! Now convinced it isn't the discs at fault, nor the writer. Sorry this is going on so long, just wanna make sure I include everything. Within the PC, I moved the new SONY drive to the top position, moved my DVD-Rom to underneath, and set them both to Cable Select (Enable Cable Select was bridged on my Hard Drive). I fitted a new ribbon cable which I was given at the shop when I bought the SONY drive. I have been into Device Manager, uninstalled the Secondary IDE channel and Primary IDE channel and rebooted a couple of times. Everything I look at suggests that everything is wired up correctly and has the right drivers. I have also updated the Firmware for the SONY writer. I do not think the problem is caused by hardware, although I guess it is possible the new drive I bought is a dud. Having said that, if it is then it has the same problem as my old one as it fails in exactly the same way. Before I actually mention the problem (hope someone is still with me), I need to add that I reformatted the hard drive, and installed a fresh copy of Windows XP Media Centre a while ago. This will sound stupid I know, but I am not sure if my DVD writing problem started prior to the reinstall, as a result of the install, or after the install. I can't remember how long the problem has been plaguing me, but only this week have I really had a chance to look into it in depth. I am so gutted I have been unable to fix this alone, but hope you can help. Other than writing DVDs, my PC seems in tip-top form, no other problems of any kind with any hardware or software. When I was successfully writing to DVD it was mainly movies and I was using DVD Decrypter with DVD Shrink. It was still these programmes when my problems started, though I have now got ImgBurn - and the problem is the same. The Sony reads CDs and DVDs perfectly, and I have been able to rip both (CD's using WMP and DVDs using RipitForMe) with no problem. I can write data to CDs, and also music files to CD with no problem - using ImgBurn. However, when I try to write either data or a movie to DVD, the problem occurs. Log to follow, but basically the problem is that it all seems to start ok, it says Writing LeadIn, the time elapsed starts to run, the time remaining pops up, then the time remaining goes to 'unknown'. It is when this happens I know it's not gonna work. The time elapsed will just keep on running and running. After a while, the 'write retries : 0' goes to '1', and this will just keep going up to 20 where it will give up. This log is from a go I had earlier. As soon as write retries : 0 went to one I took the log, as I didn't want to wait for the 20 tries to write this thread. I 20:44:47 ImgBurn Version 2.4.2.0 started! I 20:44:47 Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition (5.1, Build 2600 : Service Pack 3) I 20:44:47 Total Physical Memory: 523,760 KB - Available: 184,152 KB I 20:44:47 Initialising SPTI... I 20:44:47 Searching for SCSI / ATAPI devices... I 20:44:48 Found 1 DVD-ROM, 1 DVD